Worlds Without End Blog feed http://www.worldswithoutend.com Blog feed for Worlds Without End EN <![CDATA[Recent Additions: Fantasy Masterworks]]> The Conan Chronicles, Volume 2: The Hour of the DragonThe Book of the New Sun, Volume 1: Shadow and ClawThe Chronicles of CorumThe Worm OuroborosThe Mark of the Beast

As promised, and a little ahead of schedule, the Fantasy Masterworks series is up.  This is of course a companion series to the SF Masterworks that went in earlier this week.  (Scroll down the page for more on that.)  There are some great books in this series, 50 in all, and again some great cover art to go with them.

Quite a few of these books are omnibus editions like The Conan Chronicles, Volume 1 and Volume 2 which include all of Robert E. Howard's Conan stories in chronological order.  You'll find Gene Wolfe's classic Book of the New Sun series in a 2 volume set and omnibus editions of 2 classic Michael Moorcock series: The Chronicles of Corum and The History of the Runestaff.

Some of these books really are old-school fantasy classics.  Two books by Lord Dunsany, Time and the Gods and The King of Elfland's Daughter, A Voyage to Arcturas by David Lindsay and The Worm Ouroboros by E.R Eddison come to us pre 1930.  Never really thought I'd be adding Rudyard Kipling to WWEnd but now he's here with The Mark of the Beast, a collection of his strange and ghostly tales.  We're gettin' all respectable 'round here.

You know, I thought I had read a lot of fantasy in my time but I can only check off 2 books out of 50.  A rather poor showing.  I guess I was reading the wrong fantasy books.  How do you fare with the Fantasy Masterworks list?  Check it out and let us know what you think.
 

]]> 3/4/2010 1/1/1900 11:37:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=195 195 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: SF Masterworks]]> The First Men in the MoonThe Fountains of ParadiseThe Stars My DestinationThe Book of SkullsA Scanner Darkly

The SF Masterworks is a series of science fiction books published by Orion through its imprints Millennium and Gollancz.  The idea was to bring the best out of print titles back into circulation so they could be enjoyed by new generations of readers.  The series features some excellent books and some really great covers - two factors that make them extremely collectible.

Many of the books in the series were already in our database, as winners and nominees for the awards we cover, and the remainder has now been added to bring us to a total of 73.  I've also gone in and replaced all the existing book covers with the Masterwork covers to complete the set.  We've built a SF Masterworks page to display them all together so you can easily see how many you've read.  Sounds like a good reading challenge to me.  I've only read 11 from the list so far but I found that I already had 7 more on my reading list.

The folks at Orion really like Philip K. Dick.  There are 14 PKD books in the series - far more than any other author - but you'll find many other greats in the list like Alfred Bester, Arthur C. Clarke and Robert Silverberg to name a few.  I'm also excited to be adding many new authors including H.G. Wells to our database.  The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds, The First Men in the Moon and The Invisible Man all pre-date the awards by many years but remain among the most familiar classics of the genre.

Take a look at the list and let us know what you think.  How does this list compare to the awards?  How many have you read?  I'll be adding more lists going forward to complement and fill in some of the gaps from our awards coverage.  For next week I'm already working on the companion Fantasy Masterworks list - to cover both sides of the SF/F aisle.  What other lists should we consider?
 

]]> 2/28/2010 1/1/1900 10:09:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=190 190 <![CDATA[Kiln People]]> Kiln PeopleLet me start by saying I really like David Brin.  I've read many of his books and have always enjoyed them.  Earth was great and I loved The Uplift Saga in particular but as much as I like his other work, I just could not get into Kiln People.  There is nothing particularly bad about the writing - some of the characters are interesting, and the story is a serviceable who-dunnit murder mystery - but the world of Kiln People is just a bit silly.

In this future, everyone has an in-home kiln that they use to make life-size robotic clay duplicates of themselves called "dittos".  You get up in the morning, lie down on the machine next to a blank that looks just like you and imprint your consciousness on the blank.  You send the new you out to mow the grass or to the office to work in your place or on a climbing expedition in the Andes.  Whatever you don't want to do yourself, in person, your dit will handle for you.

There are different types of dittos for different tasks and each has a specific color.  You make a green dit to do mundane chores, they're cheap to produce but not very bright.  For work you'd make an expensive gray as they're more suited for complex thinking.  White ones will have sex for you if you can't be bothered to show up in person or if you don't want to risk STD's.  If you're a waiter you can make a yellow or two or three and off to work they go to do three times the work for you.  The catch is that at the end of the day your dittos "die" so they have to be home before they expire so they can download the day's memories back into your brain and be recycled into a new dit for the next day. You get the benefit of the experience from a safe remove via the downloaded memories and emotions... orgasms and all.

The technology is common as any household appliance so there are millions of clones out and about on their owner's behalf.  So many in fact that they outnumber real people on the street.  The real people are busy gardening or reading at the beach or enjoying other recreational pursuits.

When I read, I form a mental image of the world I'm reading about.  With Kiln People, it was a cartoon world over-run by Gummy Bear people.  It was too hard to take seriously and I ended up baling after 140 pages.  I only stuck with it that long because I like Brin's other stuff.  Plus, I just read Dune, glorious book that it is, and I thought it was the comparison that was killing Kiln People for me.  Turns out it was the gummies.  For a book that garnered so many award nominations and an 8.5 rating, I was really disappointed.
 

]]> 2/28/2010 1/1/1900 2:39:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=188 188 <![CDATA[2009 Nebula Awards Final Ballot]]> The Windup Girl The Love We Share Without Knowing Flesh and Fire

The City & The City Boneshaker Finch

The Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) announced the 2009 Nebula Awards nominees.  They are:

The SFWA site has the complete list of nominees for all categories.

]]> 2/19/2010 1/1/1900 12:51:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=186 186 <![CDATA[New Favorite Authors]]> Isaac Asimov Samuel R. Delany David Brin Jeff Carlson Nalo Hopkinson Vernor Vinge Tobias S. Buckell Greg Bear Catherine Asaro Gene WolfeMargaret Atwood Ray Bradbury Cory Doctorow Michael Chabon Minister Faust Neil Gaiman Iain M. Banks Jonathan Lethem Richard K. Morgan Connie Willis Poul Anderson Peter S. Beagle John Brunner Octavia E. Butler

Our main objective here at Worlds Without End is to bring you the best science fiction and fantasy books the genre has to offer. We've started by providing coverage of the top 10 "best novel" awards in the field. These books are the core of our growing database of over 1,700 books.

But we want to do more than just list the award winning books. We want to introduce you to some of the best authors around and get you to read them. Some are old favorites - giants in the field. Some you've heard of - the rising stars - but maybe never tried. Many you've probably never even heard of - new authors or those that have escaped your notice thus far. That's where we want to help. WWEnd currently has 498 authors for you to explore and by the time award season is over we'll have a couple dozen more.

We're working on updating our author information all the time: writing up bios, finidng author pics and web links etc. like the 40 new videos we just added to the author pages. We've got almost 300 vids on our Author Videos page for you to watch. We're also trying to get some more interviews lined up like the one we did with Rober J. Sawyer. There's a lot of great information on those pages that you can use to find your next read so take a look around. You may just find a new favorite author along the way.

Just for fun: How many of the authors pictured above can you name and how many have you read?

]]> 2/11/2010 1/1/1900 8:25:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=184 184 <![CDATA[Recent Additions - Locus Magazine 2009 Recommended Reading List]]> Locus Magazine - FebruaryThis week I took a break from the usual series updates to do a major addition to WWEnd, namely the Locus Magazine 2009 Recommended Reading List.  We've now got all the novels on the Locus list for you to review - 61 new books and over 40 new authors!

In case you're not familiar with the list, it's Locus' annual run down of the books that they think merit your attention from the previous year - and this year's list is a doozy!  You'll be seeing many of these books on the short lists for the big awards this year, in fact several are already on the BSFA Short List, so add 'em to your reading list now before awards season starts in earnest.

And speaking of awards, now is the time for you to vote in the Locus Poll.  Anyone can vote but subscriber votes count double so if you've been thinking about subscribing, now is a great time to do it.  So now, without further ado, the list: 

 

 

Novels - Science Fiction


Novels - Fantasy


Young Adult Books


First Novels

 

]]> 2/9/2010 1/1/1900 9:51:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=182 182 <![CDATA[The Name of the Wind]]> The Name of the WindPatrick Rothfuss may be getting best known for the amount of time he takes editing his novels—he spent seven years editing The Name of the Wind, and it has been three years since its publication, with still no solid date set for the sequel—but judging by his first novel, it is time well spent. His is one of those rare fantasy genre novels that focuses strongly on the human element and only a little on the fantasy. For instance, Rothfuss, following in the great tradition begun by Tolkien, provides a map of his fictional continent, complete with cities, kingdoms and oceans; it is to his credit that I never once had to reference it. Magical powers and strange beasts also have their place, but it is subordinate to the memoirs of one Kvothe, the greatest hero still alive.

Kvothe is the storyteller, and he is telling the story of himself. From his young childhood as the son of traveling performers, to his Dickensian days in a monstrous city, to his unlikely admission into The University as a mid-teenager, he is certainly not the kind of man who doubts his own strength. If he were not so well-accomplished, he would be justly called a braggart. Indeed, one of the most fantastic parts of this fantasy novel is how easily he learns and grows. An arcanist falls in with the troupe, and the young narrator quickly learns all of the man’s basic lessons and even some that he had never considered as possibilities. Kvothe is a prodigy similar to Ender in Ender’s Game or Will in Good Will Hunting, and his quick rise is one of the few disappointments of the story. As a teacher himself, one would expect Rothfuss to be more sympathetic to the hard grunt work required to learn anything worthwhile, but Kvothe just makes it look a little too easy.

While some parts of the story are of higher quality than others, none of it is bad, and none of it is even particularly boring. The quick movement of the first half of the book grinds down when Kvothe joins The University, but that is only because Rothfuss is carefully building up a world of characters and relationships, not to mention the various sciences being taught and learnt. We learn almost nothing of this world’s vast history or its varied geography, but by the end of the first novel it feels like we know the world intimately. That is not a mean feat.

Rumor has it that 2010 will finally see the publication of book two, The Wise Man’s Fear, and hopefully that is the case. Reading this novel will leave you wanting more, and it will be all you can do to keep from writing nagging comments on Rothfuss’ blog.

]]> 2/8/2010 1/1/1900 8:09:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=179 179 <![CDATA[The Sleeper has awakened!]]> Dune by Frank HerbertDune, by Frank Herbert, is a book that's been on my list for ages.  I kept putting it off because there was a movie and a mini series at hand and there are so many other books on my list.  What put me over the edge was the Mind Voyages reading challenge.  I decided that this was the year I would finally read Dune so I could cross it off my list.

Let me start by saying that I really love this book and wish I had read it years ago.  Going in I was concerned I would be let down after all this time and all the hype.  Dune is on top of just about every "best of" list I\'ve ever seen and people would boggle when I told them I hadn't read it yet.   I was expecting something amazing and in the back of my head I thought it would end up being a let down.

As it turned out my concerns were unfounded.  I love all the detail in this story: the Fremen culture, the political intrigue in the Empire, the Arrakis ecology, the Bene Gesserit manipulations and on and on. Dune is an excellent example of world building.  I find it nigh impossible to separate the book from the movie so it was great to see some characters I knew from the movie fleshed out.  The film version relegated some great characters to the side line.  My familiarity with the movie had me seeing Kyle, Jurgen, Patrick, Sting and all in my head as I was reading which turned out to enhance my enjoyment a great deal.

I understand why so many fans of the book don't like the movie but there are some scenes in the movie that turned out to be better than what was in the book.  The Water of Life scene in particular. In the book Paul goes off by himself to drink the water and falls into a coma for weeks.  Not very cinematic, or indeed dramatic, at all and frankly a bit of a let down. Give me the awesome "Shai-Hulud Salute" over "Muad 'Dib unconscious in the cupboard" any day.  The movie did sacrifice a lot as is the case with most movie adaptations but the feel was right.  The richness of a layered story like Dune gets lost in translation.  I've grown to accept the trade off as the price you pay to see this kind of stuff on the silver screen but I have been wondering what David Lynch could have done with Dune had it gotten the LOTR treatment.  Three films back to back to back to tell the story in full?  That would have been amazing.

The book fully deserves the accolades that have been heaped on it.  Indeed, I'll be able to add my voice to the chorus now but best of all, I can take my turn to stare with incredulity and gasp "You've never read Dune?!" when some poor soul admits the flaw.  I just have to find someone who hasn\'t read it.  The Sleeper has awakened.

]]> 2/3/2010 1/1/1900 10:57:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=175 175 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: Random Reads]]> Black Powder WarAltered CarbonPsycho HouseRama IIThe Third Claw of God

This week I've added 20 more books to the WWEnd DB to finish out 13 series.  My thanks to member mkearl who told me about The Temeraire Series by Naomi Novik.  There are now 5 books available (of a projected 9) beginning with 2007 Hugo nominated His Majesty's Dragon.  Napolean era with dragons!  Thanks also to whargoul for pointing out the missing books from the Takeshi Kovacs Series.  Broken Angels and Woken Furies have been added to 2003 PKD winner Altered Carbon.  Don't know how I missed the Kovacs series... Altered Carbon is one of my favorites!

Happy reading and keep 'em coming.

]]> 1/31/2010 1/1/1900 5:52:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=172 172 <![CDATA[2009 BSFA Award Shortlist]]> ArkThe City and The CityLaviniaYellow Blue Tibia

The nominees for the 2009 British Science Fiction Association Award have been announced.  They are:


The winner will be announced at Eastercon, Odyssey 2010 in London.  You can get the entire list of nominees in all categories at the official BSFA web site.  Congrats and good luck to the all four authors, and congrats to Gollancz for grabbing 3 of the 4 spots!

So, has anybody read the nominess?  Which author/book do you think will win in April?  Which do you want to win?

]]> 1/25/2010 1/1/1900 11:07:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=167 167 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: One's and Two's]]> The Word for World is ForestBones of the MoonThe Brothel in RosenstrasseThe WeathermakersWhen Gravity Fails

This week I've added 17 new books, mostly one's and two's, to finish out 8 series.  The largest addition is Ursula K. LeGuin's Hainish Cycle.  I've added the 4 volumes that fall between The Dispossessed (1974 Nebula, 1975 Hugo & Locus SF winner and 1975 Campbell nominee) and  The Left Hand of Darkness (1969 Nebula and 1970 Hugo winner).

There are some great books in this new list so check 'em out.

On a side note, I'm running out of series to update.  This is mostly a good thing.  It means I'm almost done and I can move on to some other books.  The bad news is that there are many series that I'm unaware of and I need your help.  If you find any books that you know to be part of a series and we don't have the series info listed please let me know.  There is an email link in the series dropdown on the novel page that you can use to set us straight.

Happy reading.

]]> 1/24/2010 1/1/1900 11:53:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=165 165 <![CDATA[Awards: 2009 Philip K. Dick Nominees]]> Bitter AngelsThe PrisonerThe Repossession Mambo

The Devil\'s AlphabetCyberabad DaysCenturies Ago and Very FastProphets

Karen Hellekson, one of the 2009 PKD jurors, has reported on her blog that the nominees for the 2009 Philip K. Dick Award have been announced.  They are:

First prize and any special citations will be announced on Friday, April 2, 2010 at Norwescon 33 at the Doubletree Seattle Airport Hotel, SeaTac, Washington.

Anderson, Cortes, Garcia and Swann are new authors to WWEnd.  Anybody familiar with these authors or read any of the nominated books?

]]> 1/17/2010 1/1/1900 11:56:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=163 163 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: Perfect 10]]> Gardens of the MoonFalling FreeForty Thousand in GehennaStarfishA Shadow in Summer

We've got 28 new books for you this week to complete 10 more series. We added 8 new books to The Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson (love the cover art for this series) and 5 volumes to Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan Saga bringing the total to 13 books.  We've also got the 4-part Rifters Trilogy from author Peter Watts.  Book 3, Behemoth, is in 2 parts so you get a bonus book if you read it.  The rest are one's and two's to finish out.


Happy reading.

]]> 1/12/2010 1/1/1900 6:25:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=151 151 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: Vampires and Sundry]]> Interview with the VampireBlood BrothersA Princess of RoumaniaLord Valentine\'s CastleThe Family Trade

Well, the holidays are over and it's back to work.  This week I've added 38 new books to complete 11 different series by 10 authors.  We've got a wide variety of new books for you to check out including a whole coven of vampire books:

 

]]> 1/4/2010 1/1/1900 11:04:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=149 149 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: Holdstock and Jones]]> AvilionThis week has been a bit hectic with the Holidays coming on so we don’t have a lot of additions to talk about but what we lack in quantity we make up for in quality.

Robert Holdstock passed away last month unexpectedly at the age of 61.  From all accounts he was a genuine and lovely man in life and an excellent writer with a loyal following.  There are some nice articles about his life and writings including this one from David Barnett in The Guardian.

Holdstock is perhaps best known for his multiple award-winning Mythago Cycle.  The first book, Mythago Wood, won the British Science Fiction Association award in 1984 and the World Fantasy Award in 1985.  He followed that up with Lavondyss which also won the BSFA award in 1988.  Gate of Ivory, Gate of Horn, book 6 of the series, was nominated for the British Fantasy Society's August Derleth Award in 1999.  We\'ve just completed the cycle with the addition of The Bone Forest, The Hollowing, Merlin's Wood and the last volume, Avilion, which came out just this year.

Last week we completed a bunch of trilogies including Gwyneth Jones’s Aleutian Trilogy.  This week Gwyneth makes another appearance with her Bold As Love Cycle.  The first 3 books in the series all had nominations starting with Bold as Love which won the 2002 Arthur C. Clarke Award and also garnered nominations from the BSFA in 2001 and the BFS in 2002.  Castles Made of Sand (2002 BSFA nominee) and Midnight Lamp (2003 BSFA and 2004 Clarke nominee), books 2 and 3 respectively, have been joined by 2005's Band of Gypsies and Rainbow Bridge from 2006.

These two series would make excellent gifts for any SF/F fan you've got on your last minute list... including yourself.  Happy reading.

]]> 12/16/2009 1/1/1900 6:29:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=147 147 <![CDATA[Reading Challenge: Mind Voyages]]> DuneThe Forever WarDoomsday BookPaladin of SoulsThe Man in the High Castle

I've been thinking about doing a reading challenge here on WWEnd for some time but just never got around to it.  I was just planning to start one for the New Year when I found Mind Voyages.  Mind Voyages is a yearlong reading challenge and blog set up by Robin of My Two Blessings that focuses on the Hugo and Nebula award winners and noms.  A perfect fit for me and WWEnd members as well, methinks.

The challenge is divided up into several "voyages" of differing lengths and themes.  You choose the books you want to read within the loosely defined parameters of each voyage rather than having to read from a pre-determined list.  You can set yourself a modest goal like the Moon Voyage, which is to read 6 Hugo winners, or you can go for a bigger challenge like Jupiter which is all the 1990's winners.  Of course you can go for as many voyages as you like throughout the year if you want a bigger challenge.

The savvy reader will find lots of ways to get max value out of the books they choose.  Look for the books that overlap voyages like dual Hugo and Nebula winners (two birds, one stone) or pick 2 Philip K. Dick books for your Moon Voyage and knock out the Venus Voyage at the same time.  Someone will eventually figure out the least number of books you would have to read to complete all voyages.  I'm going for the Moon and will try for Mars as well.  Along the way I'll knock out Venus, Mercury and the Slingshot Back to Earth by reading 12 books.  Here's my list as it stands:

There are shorter ways to get there I think but many of those books I've already read so I had to dance around a bit to get to this list.  The best thing about this challenge is that almost all these books were on my list anyway and I'm still trying to read all the Hugo and Nebula winners so this will bring me closer to that goal as well.

So who's in and what does your list look like?

]]> 12/14/2009 1/1/1900 7:01:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=144 144 <![CDATA[C. J. Cherryh on Top]]> Downbelow StationC. J. Cherryh is one of the most accomplished and popular names in the business. As you can see in our database, Ms. Cherryh has earned many plaudits for her work including 18 nominations across the 10 awards we cover here on WWEnd.  Downbelow Station won the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1982, a feat she repeated in 1989 with Cyteen which also won the Locus SF award that same year.  Her Fortress Series and 9 volume Foreigner series have garnered many nominations and remain some of her most popular books.

Earlier this week, Ms. Cherryh was kind enough to answer a few questions on behalf of WWEnd readers. Here's what she had to say:


CW: We seem to be moving toward a world where books are changing into e-content, and the old familiar paradigm of author, publisher, bookstore, reader seems to be evolving. With many of your titles available now as e-books (or free downloads, thank you for that!) what do you think this means for the author- end of the food chain?

CJC: We eat better. Right now many publishers have the notion that, short-term, they can cut out the trucks, the warehouse, the printing, and all of that, yet still pay the author 8-10% of cover price---when I can do the same job myself and get 100% of cover price. I'm not even a bad cover artist, I live with a better one, and my brother is one.  The publishers need to take a good hard look at this situation and make some meaningful proposals for the survival of New York Publishing as we know it, or something is going to give, and soon.

Not oCyteennly that---the oil companies that bought the publishing houses in the 70's are now thinking they can just shove real science fiction aside and we'll just wilt and fade away. Wrong. We're the very people with the very readership who are most dangerous to their way of doing business.

CW: Are there any non- Science Fiction/Fantasy authors that have influenced your work?

CJC: Publius Vergilius Maro, Conan Doyle, if you can count him, and Jeffrey Farnol.

CW: What great new authors have you discovered recently?

CJC: None recently, but I've been re-reading. Project Gutenberg is a great resource.

CW: Do you have any advice for the new writers coming up through the ranks?

CJC: Get published in paper first, get a readership and THEN go e-book.

CW: Charles Dickens famously arranged objects into exact positions whenever he wrote. Stephen King took a vitamin with tea or water whenever he sat down to write. What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

CJC: I write to disaster documentaries on Science and Discovery.

Fortress in the Eye of TimeCW: Can you please tell the readers of WWEnd about your latest projects, what is forthcoming, etc.?

CJC: Closed Circle is a joint e-publishing venture with Jane S. Fancher and Lynn Abbey: we are recovering our backlist and bringing it out ourselves, and we may be doing new work specifically for our own publishing venture---as well as continuing traditional paper publishing via our usual publishers.

CW: Lastly, part of what we do at Worlds Without End is track the Science Fiction and Fantasy awards. If you could have your own award, the much-coveted "C.J. Cherryh Award", what would your criteria be?

CJC: Interesting question: I would say innovation, scientific information, accuracy, and literary quality.

Those are the very things that are evidenced in her own work.

We'd like to thank Ms. Cherry again for her time.  She's obviously very busy these days with her new publishing venture.  We look forward to checking out her Closed Circle work and her other new titles soon.
 

]]> 12/9/2009 1/1/1900 8:25:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=141 141 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: A Trilogy of Trilogies]]> The PhysiognomyMemorandaThe Beyond

In past weeks we've been seeing a lot of big series coming into WWEnd with The Grand Tour, Discworld and  The Dragon Knight counted among them.  This week the magic number is three.  Three for trilogy.  We've added 22 new books to the WWEnd database completing nine trilogies.

Let's start with The Well-Built City Trilogy by Jeffrey Ford.  The Physiognomy won the 1998 World Fantasy Award and to that we've added Memoranda and The Beyond in the reprint editions from Golden Gryphon Press.  The cover art for this edition is a superb triptych from artist John Picacio.  Very nice indeed.

Spider Robinson and wife Jeanne Robinson bring us The Stardance Trilogy with 1980 Locus SF Nominated Stardance and its 2 sequels Starseed and Starmind.

Gwyneth Jones' Aleutian Trilogy is complete with the addition of Phoenix Café to 1992 Clarke Nominated White Queen and 1994 BSFA and 1995 Clarke nominated North Wind.

Jeff Carlson's Plague Year Trilogy is now complete.  We already had the middle volume, 2008 PKD Nom Plague War, to which we added Plague Year and Plague Zone.  I'm feeling a bit woozy all of a sudden.

The Broken God, 1994 Clarke Nominee, is the first book of David Zindell's A Requiem for Homo Sapiens.  We've added The Wild and War in Heaven, books 2 and 3 respectively.

The Marathon Trilogy by D. Alexander Smith is all in with Marathon and Homecoming added either side of 1988 PKD Nom Rendezvous.  Never judge a book by its cover they say.  Well these covers are pretty bad ass so be sure to check them out anyway.  I love big spaceships.

We've finished out The Jewelfire Trilogy by Freda Warrington with The Sapphire Throne and The Obsidian Tower.  They join 2000 BFS Nominated The Amber Citadel.

The Grigori Trilogy by Storm Constantine is made up of Stalking Tender Prey,     1997 BFS Nominated Scenting Hallowed Blood and Stealing Sacred Fire.  Fallen angels live among us... interesting.

Last, but not least, we have The Minotaur Trilogy by Thomas Burnett Swann.  This trilogy is different from most in that for reasons unknown Mr. Swann wrote the stories backwards.  He started with book three 1967 Hugo Nominee Day of the Minotaur, then followed it with book two The Forest of Forever in 1971 and ended with book one Cry Silver Bells in 1977.  How's that for confusing?

 

]]> 12/7/2009 1/1/1900 1:02:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=139 139 <![CDATA[Recent Additions: The Grand Tour arrives at WWEnd]]> Jupiter - Ben BovaSaturn - Ben BovaMars Life - Ben BovaVenus - Ben BovaMercury - Ben Bova

The Grand Tour series by author Ben Bova deals with the exploration and colonization of the solar system.  Each book tends to focus on a different planet with some common themes and characters appearing across the series.  Exploration, colonization, amazing discoveries, corporate espionage, murder, space battles... this series has got something for everyone.

Strangely, Dr. Bova has not had much luck in the awards department despite a large and faithful following.  The only Grand Tour book to garner a nomination was 2006's Titan which won the 2007 Campbell Award.  There are 18 total books in the series including the short story collection Tales of the Grand Tour and the 4 volumes that make up the Asteroid Wars:  The Precipice, The Rock Rats, The Silent War and The Aftermath.  We've got them listed in the author's preferred chronological order though many of the stories overlap in time.

One of the nice things about this series is that despite the character and time overlaps most of the books can be read independantly or out of order.  The exceptions would be the Asteroid Wars and the Mars trilogy: Mars, Return to Mars, and Mars Life which should be read in sequence as each novel builds on what went before.  I cherry picked my way through most of the planets reading Mars, Saturn, Jupiter and Venus and enjoyed them all.  I really like the nice cover art as well.  They've got a classic SF look.

]]> 11/29/2009 1/1/1900 1:15:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=137 137 <![CDATA[Neil Gaiman Inspired Scents]]> Neil Gaiman - Black Phoenix Alchemy LabThe great thing about fantasy books is that they transport you.  They manage to do it in ways that are often more immersive than movies, which have the advantage of sight and sound.  For some of us, though, the story isn't quite visceral enough.  You haven't been truly transported until you've experienced the sights, sounds, and smells of your favorite characters.  If you are one of those types, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab has something for you.  Their own collection of Neil Gaiman scents.

No, they don't actually smell like Neil Gaiman, but one of them smells like Mad Sweeney from American Gods.  Apparently, he smells like whiskey and oak.  If you'd rather sniff Mr. Ibis, well, you're in luck, they've distilled his essence as well.  Want to inhale characters from other books?  You can choose from many varieties inspired by the worlds of Stardust, Anansi Boys, and The Graveyard Book.

We're not sure that this is what Shakespeare meant when he said "verse distills your truth", but at least they're doing their best to truly distil verse.

Profits go to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

]]> 11/28/2009 1/1/1900 6:38:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=134 134 <![CDATA[Odds and Ends]]> Raising the StonesIt's been a few weeks since I last posted an update with new books.  We've been busy with site updates this last month so I had to put them on hold.  This latest addition is a bit thin with only eight new books but it does complete four series.

First up is Sheri S. Tepper's Arbai Trilogy:.  I've added Raising the Stones, the middle volume between 1990 Hugo and Locus nominee Grass and 1993 Campbell nom Sideshow.

For Michael Moorcock I added 2 books to complete The Dancers at the End of Time trilogy.  An Alien Heat and The End Of All Songs bookend  1976 BFS Winner, The Hollow Lands.  I looked high and low for synopsis and excerpts for these with no joy.  The older books are such a pain to find info for.

Tanith Lee's Tales from the Flat Earth series is now completed with the addition of three books: Delusion's Master, Delirium's Mistress and Night's Sorceries.  Book 1 Night's Master was nominated for the 1979 WFA and book 2, Death's Master, was the 1980 BFS Winner.

Last, but not least, is His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman.  I added in the first 2 books of the trilogy: The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife.  The Amber Spyglass was a double nominee in 1997 for the WFA and Locus Fantasy awards.

Until next time... Stay curious my friends. ™

]]> 11/22/2009 1/1/1900 1:29:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=127 127 <![CDATA[Talk back to WWEnd]]> Worlds Without End Blog

Well, it's been a long time coming but it's finally here.  WWEnd has a functioning blog at last!  We've been posting here and there for some time using an embedded  RSS feed from LiveJournal as a stop-gap measure while we worked on other areas of the site.  Who knew it would take almost 2 years to get back around to it?  We own our shame.

The LJ embed did not allow commenting so we have 50+ posts below with zero comments to kick off our new blog.  That's virgin snow my friends.  Plenty of opportunity to make your mark.  Watch this space for more news and information as we ramp up to speed.  We'll be covering the awards, SFF news and events, author interviews, book reviews and even an ocassional science piece in addtion to regular updates about happenings here on WWEnd.  Until next time....

]]> 11/18/2009 1/1/1900 11:15:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=123 123 <![CDATA[2009 World Fantasy Awards Results - It's a Tie]]> The Shadow YearTender MorselsThe 2009 World Fantasy Awards winners have been announced.  It\'s a tie: 

The Shadow Year by Jeffrey Ford (Morrow)
Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan (Allen & Unwin; Knopf)

On the outside looking in:

The House of the Stag by Kage Baker (Tor)
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins; Bloomsbury)
Pandemonium by Daryl Gregory (Del Rey)

Congrats to Jeffrey Ford and Margo Lanagan and all the nominees!

]]> 11/1/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 7:23:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=68 68 <![CDATA[The New York Review of Science Fiction Reading Series: Lovecraft Unbound]]> Lovecraft UnboundEllen DatlowElizabeth BearRichard Bowes

It was a cold, rainy Manhattan evening... the shadows oozing from the alleys seemed particularly menacing. Was that a puddle of street water at the curb, or a puddle of blood? As I paced nervously through the uninviting streets, past shuttered shops and grim Brownstones, I couldn't help but wonder who would be out on a night like this? I soon got my answer... the followers of H.P. Lovecraft! I and his other adherents were happy to brave the dreary streets to attend the latest New York Review of Science Fiction Reading Series event: the launch of the new Ellen Datlow compendium, "Lovecraft Unbound."

The reading and "soft launch" of the book took place in the SoHo Gallery of Digital Art, a bright and thoroughly hospitable space for an event like this. "Lovecraft Unbound" is the latest anthology from Ms. Datlow, a matriarch of the Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy genres. The book is a collection of Lovecraft-inspired short stories as envisaged by some of the most formidable writers still alive and twitching. Producer and Executive Curator Jim Freund ran the evening, and he did a great job introducing the guests and hosting the reading in general.

Ms. Datlow (multiple winner of the Hugo Award, the Bram Stoker Award, the World Fantasy Award, the International Guild Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, and the Locus Award, among others) began the evening explaining that she wanted to present a vision of Lovecraft "...without the tentacles, but hopefully with the flavor, the paranoia, of Lovecraft. Okay, well, some tentacles." The anthology readers on hand were, in alphabetical order, Elizabeth Bear, Richard Bowes, and Michael Cisco.

Mr. Bowes (winner of the World Fantasy Award, the Lamda Literary Award and 2006 Nebula nominee for From the Files of the Time Rangers among others) read first, from his story "The Office of Doom," a wry, thoroughly enjoyable tale. Michael Cisco (winner of the International Horror Guild Award) read his story next, "Machines of Concrete Light and Dark." It was very different in flavor but no less entertaining... a dark, bloody story that left the crowd shivering. Was it mere coincidence that none of our pictures of Mr. Cisco came out? We leave you to decide....

Ms. Bear (winner of the Hugo Award, the Locus Award for Best First Novel, the John W. Campbell Award and 2006 PKD/2007 Locus nominee for Carnival) read a portion of her story, co-written with Sarah Monette, "Mongoose." It was a rich combination of science fiction artifice and Lovecraftian dread, and definitely left the audience wanting more. (We were able to catch up to Ms. Bear after the reading, and ask her, on behalf of WWEnd readers, what she was working on next. "I've just handed in the draft of the second Jacob's Ladder novel, and I'm working on a couple fantasy novels after that.")

The SoHo neighborhood was a fine choice for the book launch: it still evoked, especially at night, the gritty gloom of the previous century's tightly packed tenements. H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) lived not too far away for a time, across the river in Brooklyn. That borough inspired one of his stories, "The Horror of Red Hook", written in 1925.

"Lovecraft Unbound" successfully evokes that brand of grisly horror and macabre fantasy that Lovecraft spawned a century ago. The stories are as rewarding and collectively gratifying as you would hope and expect from an Ellen Datlow anthology, and we're happy to recommend it to WWEnd readers. And for those in the greater New York area, we also recommend the NYRSF Reading Series! They do after all have access to some of the best talent in the business, and their readings are a monthly event worth checking out.

]]> 11/1/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 11:49:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=119 119 <![CDATA[Big Apple Comic Con]]> Big Apple Comic ConBig Apple Comic ConBig Apple Comic ConBig Apple Comic Con

Are the audiences for Science Fiction and Fantasy waning? Not if the attendance at this year’s Big Apple Comic Convention in New York City is any indication. Fans packed New York’s Pier 54 to see, talk about and/ or buy everything from the latest in comic trends to sci fi movies and TV shows. The convention space given over to Wii games was large, and always crowded. Science Fiction and Fantasy afficionados crowded into Q&A panels, and signing booths. Guests this year included William Shatner, Kate Mulgrew, Brent Spiner, and Nichelle Nicolls. The convention was packed into a 175,000 square foot space in Pier 94 on New York’s Hudson River. Over 500 exhibitors represented the comic, science fiction, fantasy, and gaming vendors. Here are a few trends we can report on, from our interviews and product reviews:

1. Sex! More is better! The libidos of science fiction and fantasy fans are apparently asking for, and getting, more naughty bits. Guest William Shatner was eager to note his new comic book, based on his Tekwar series, was sexier than ever. And news of up-coming TV series and movie trajectories, from the Q&A sessions, confirmed that viewers will be served up more sex appeal in the near future. Which is an appropriate sequeway to our next trend:

2. Vampires! Who is not taking advantage of the current Fad of Fangs? There was a Princess Leia with vampiric incisors, and a Wonder Woman Wampyr, and who could sort out the bloodless undead from the average comic book fan, feverishly sorting through the vendor boxes for a needed back issue? The convention crowds flowed beneath posters and banners of vampiric tales, new and old. Vampire chic has never been more popular or more prevalent, as evidenced by the success of screen juggernauts “Twilight” and “True Blood”. Are pouting, angst-ridden nubile teens more alluring, or more annoying, when they have fangs? The media and print industries know the answer. Where is Buffy when we need her most...

This year’s Big Apple Comic Convention was an entertaining mix of the usual thrills and some new surprises. The buzz, and the total immersion in the genres, again was worth the price of admission.

]]> 10/28/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 7:54:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=117 117 <![CDATA[Here, there be Dragons... and, er... Spaceships...]]> The Dragon and the GeorgeThis week's additions are all Gordon R. Dickson.  Dickson was a prolific writer of Fantasy and Science Fiction with over 60 novels to his credit.  He is perhaps best remembered for his 2 big series:  The Dragon Knight and The Childe Cycle (Dorsai) .

The Dragon Knight is a fantasy series of 9 books starting with The Dragon and the George (1977 BFS winner and WFA nominee) and finishing with The Dragon and the Fair Maid of Kent in 2000.  This is classic "man from our world is transported to a fantasy land where he becomes a hero" fantasy that somehow escaped my notice all these years.  This is just the sort of thing I would have flown through back in the day.

Dickson's Childe Cycle, also referred to as the Dorsai series, is his most famous foray into science fiction.  The first book in the series is 1960 Hugo nominee, Dorsai!  Dickson followed up with 9 other novels (I'm counting The Final Encyclopedia as 2 novels) plus several novellas and short stories.  Dickson passed away in 2001 before he could complete the rest of the series he envisioned and the final Childe volume, Antagonist, was eventually completed by his long-time assistant David W. Wixon in 2007.

Happy reading.

Discuss in the Forum

]]> 10/27/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 10:30:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=66 66 <![CDATA[Big Sc-Fi!]]> Sun of SunsThe last few weeks I've added in some serious fantasy series with Xanth, The Wheel of Time and Discworld topping the list.

This week I wanted to show that there are some sizeable SF series out there too.  I started off with The Saga of the Skolian Empire by Catherine Asaro.  This is a big SF series with 13 books.  We already had The Last Hawk (1998 Nebula nominated) and The Quantum Rose (2001 Nebula winner) - books 3 and 6 respectively - so I added in the other 11 books ending with Diamond Star, out just this year.

To top that I went in for an old classic series from Marion Zimmer Bradley, Darkover.  Twenty-two books!  The Sword of Aldones (1963 Hugo nom), The Heritage of Hastur (1975 Nebula nominee) and 1978 Hugo nominee, The Forbidden Tower, are the most celebrated books of a series that spans 40 years.  This is a series that you often hear mentioned when people talk about what got them hooked on SF.

Keeping in the SF vein, I've also finished out several smaller SF series like Peter F. Hamilton's Greg Mandel Trilogy, which includes 1995 BSFA nominee The Nano Flower, and Greg Bear's Anvil of Stars - the sequel to triple nominee The Forge of God (Nebula 1987, Hugo and Locus SF 1988).

Next comes Karl Schroeder's Virga, beginning with Sun of Suns (2007 Campbell nom) and ending with The Sunless Countries published by Tor in 2009.  I love the Stephan Martinere cover art for these books and the excerpts sound intriguing.  I've added these to my reading list!

Stephen Baxter's Xeelee Sequence is now complete with the 3 middle volumes added between Raft (1992 Clarke nominee) and Vacuum Diagrams, winner of the 1999 Philip K. Dick Award.

That's a lot of sci-fi but don't fret fantasy fans - I didn't forget you.  I went old-school again by finishing out Barbara Hambly's Winterlands series with books 2-4 added to 1986 Locus Fantasy nominated Dragonsbane. And finally, to round things out, I give you the last volume of Orson Scott Card's The Tales of Alvin Maker.  I somehow managed to miss The Crystal City last go 'round.

That's 46 new books for you to tag, so get busy.

Discuss in the Forums

]]> 10/13/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 8:03:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=64 64 <![CDATA[Discworlds Without End]]> Sir Terry PratchettThis weekend was all about Terry Pratchett and his enormous Discworld saga.  Is there a longer SF/F series out there?  Xanth was close at 32 books but Discworld is the current champ weighing in at 37 books!

Eight nominated novels were already in our data base including Hogfather (1997 BFS nom), Night Watch (2003 Locus nom), Going Postal (2005 Locus and Nebula nominated) and Making Money (2008 Locus Fantasy winner and Nebula nominee).  The other 29 have been added starting with the first of the series 1983's The Color of Magic and ending with the lastest installment, Unseen Academicals, out this year.  If you're a Discworld fan you've got a lot of new books to tag as read.

You may have noticed that most of the covers for these are reprints from HarperTorch.  I loves me a cover art series and these are fun and definitely colorful. This is a series that's been printed in many editions and translations over the years so I was happy to find the anniversary set from HT.  If you're a fan of cover art AND Discworld, you're in luck.  The Discworld Cover Wiki has an amazing collection of covers for all the books.  Go ahead and check it out.  It's mind-boggling.  Just make sure to come back, OK?

Discuss in the forums

]]> 10/5/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 8:15:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=62 62 <![CDATA[A Productive Weekend for Series Books]]> King\\\\'s DragonThis weekend I made an effort to get some more women authors' works into the database starting with Ursula K. LeGuin's Earthsea Cycle.  I added the first 3 books in that series: A Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan and The Farthest Shore .  We already had Powers (Nebula winner 2008 ) from her Annals of the Western Shore so I completed the trilogy with Gifts and Voices.

Next up is C.J. Cherryh.  Completed The Faded Sun and The Merchanter Novels series with 5 more books, bringing her total to 31 books in the WWEnd database.

Kate Elliott's Kings Dragon , part 1 of the Crown of Stars series was nominated for a Nebula in 1997 .  I added in the other 6 books with the really nice re-print covers from Orbit.  Be sure to check those out.

Christopher Fowler's Bryant and May Series is popular with the British Fantasy Society.  They've nominated 3 out of 7 books in that series including The Victoria Vanishes.  These look intriguing.

Mark Chadbourn's third trilogy, The Kingdom of the Serpent, is up to date now.  Nice cover art for these as well.  Nice to see a fantasy series break from the norm.

The Bridge Trilogy from William Gibson is now complete with the addition of Idoru and All Tomorrow's Parties.  They join Virtual Light his Hugo and Locus SF (1994) nominated book.

Last, but not least is Brian Stableford's Emortality Series.  Six books in this one including Dark Ararat, Campbell nominated in 2003.  This one is kind of strange in that the books were written out of series order.  How is one supposed to read this series?  The order in which they were written or the series order?  I've listed them in series order because that seems to be the way it's done everywhere I've seen.

For those keeping score, that's 33 new books added.  Only a billion more to go.

]]> 9/28/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 10:41:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=60 60 <![CDATA[More Series Books Added to WWEnd]]> Skylark DuQuesneAdded some more books over the weekend.

David Eddings' King of the Murgos was a Locus Fantasy nominee in 1989 so I added the other 4 books of The Malloreon to complete the series.

But what's the Malloreon without The Belgariad? Uh... just 5 books instead of 10? Yep. Had to add the whole saga.

To keep the fantasy series theme going I added in the rest of the books for Memory, Sorrow and Thorn by Tad Williams. Book 3 was nominated for the Locus Fantasy Award in 1994. If you read it, you know that the last book of the trilogy was over 1,000 pages - too many pages for a single paperback, so the publishers divided it into 2 volumes. So the Trilogy is actually 4 books in paperback form but not in hardcover. To get around this problem, I tagged both volumes of To Green Angel Tower as book 3 and added Part 1 - Seige and Part 2 - Storm as sub-titles. It's still a trilogy but you get credit for 4 books if you read them. Bonus! The new Orbit covers are tasty too.

And now for something completely different... A guy so nice you say the "E" twice - E.E. "Doc" Smith. This is old school SF we're talking about. Skylark DuQuesne was nominated for the Hugo in 1966. (Check out the Hugo lineup for 1966!) After reading the synopsis I decided I'd have to read this one. Turns out it's the 4th book of the Skylark Series written 16 years after book 3. The series was a pulp serial originally and published in a book starting in 1946! Check out the covers on this series. These are the stuff of dreams. Classic SF goodness.

These and other new additions to the WWEnd database can be found in the forum. I'll post up all the newest books each Monday.

]]> 9/21/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 10:43:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=58 58 <![CDATA[The 2009 British Fantasy Society (August Derleth) Award]]> Memoirs of a Master ForgerThe 2009 BFS August Derleth Award winner is:

Memoirs of a Master Forger, William Heaney, (Gollancz)









 

 

]]> 9/19/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 4:11:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=56 56 <![CDATA[Tim Powers' book to become Pirates IV?]]> On Stranger TidesDisney just announced that Pirates of the Caribbean IV will be named On Stranger Tides.  Sound familiar?

This isn't so much a fact as, well, pure speculation, but the latest Johnny Depp vehicle may share more than just the title of Tim Powers' 1988 WFA and Locus Fantasy nominated novel.  According to Zap2it, the Powers character, Jack Shandy, may morph into Jack Sparrow, with the rest of the novel's elements staying relatively true to the original novel.  Some level of confirmation seems to come from LatinoReview.com, which quotes Powers' agent as saying "it is not a coincidence".

I'm not sure what to think of a fourth Pirates movie, given the underwhelming nature of part three.  On the other hand, maybe Tim Powers could save the franchise.  What do you think?

 

]]> 9/13/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 11:56:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=115 115 <![CDATA[Random Reads Google Gadget for Your iGoogle]]> Worlds Without End Google GadgetHere's something you might like.  The Mighty whargoul has created a Google Gadget out of our Random Reads widget that you can add to your iGoogle home page.  Every day you'll get 5 new random reads from the WWEnd database that you can check out.

Click the book cover to go straight to the novel page or click the author name to see what else they've got to offer.  Check it out and let us know what you think.





 

]]> 8/27/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 10:04:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=54 54 <![CDATA[The 2009 Hugo Award Winner]]> The Graveyard BookThe 2009 Hugo Award winner is:

The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman (Bloomsbury, HarperCollins)





 

 

 

 

]]> 8/9/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 8:51:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=52 52 <![CDATA[2009 World Fantasy Awards Nominees]]> The House of the StagThe Shadow YearThe Graveyard BookPandemoniumTender Morsels

The nominees for the 2009 World Fantasy Awards have been announced.  They are:

The House of the Stag by Kage Baker (Tor)
The Shadow Year by Jeffrey Ford (Morrow)
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins; Bloomsbury)
Pandemonium by Daryl Gregory (Del Rey)
Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan (Allen & Unwin; Knopf)

]]> 8/4/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 12:47:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=50 50 <![CDATA[The 2009 John W. Campbell Memorial Award Winners]]> Little BrotherSong of TimeThis 2009 John W. Campbell Memorial Award winners have been announced.  It's a tie. 

Little Brother, Cory Doctorow (Tor)
Song of Time, Ian R. MacLeod (PS Publishing)

Read the official press release here.

 

 

 

 

]]> 6/29/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 2:00:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=48 48 <![CDATA[The 2009 Locus Award Winners]]> AnathemLaviniaThis 2009 Locus Award winners have been announced.

Anathem, Neal Stephenson (Atlantic UK, Morrow) - Best SF Novel
Lavinia, Ursula K. Le Guin (Harcourt) - Best Fantasy Novel

The complete list of winners for all categories can be found on the Locus web site.

 

 

 

 

 

]]> 6/27/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 11:09:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=46 46 <![CDATA[Robert J. Sawyer Interview]]> Robert J. SawyerWorlds Without End's Matthew Jones had the chance to interview Hugo Award-winning science-fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer a couple weeks ago.

Rob is one of the world’s leading science fiction authors, and recently held a book launch for his 18th novel, Wake, in which the World Wide Web gains consciousness. We also visit with him about the new prime time TV series coming out based on Rob's novel, Flashforward, that will air this fall.

 

AudioRobert J. Sawyer Interview

 

]]> 6/23/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 12:20:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=44 44 <![CDATA[Upgrades to WWEnd]]> Worlds Without EndAs you can see, if you've been here before (you'll just have to trust us if you have not), we've made some major changes to WWEnd.  The biggest change is the over all site design with new full screen background fractals instead of the header strip and a snazzy new logo.  You'll also notice some new tabs at the top of the page for the log in and the search as well as a fun little bit in the center.

With the design upgrade comes some fixes to existing features like the BookTrackr and the My World page.  We've also made the move to JQuery for all our js scripts to simplify and speed things up.  The most evident bit is the shadowbox script for the video galleries.  Speaking of videos, we've moved the author vids out of the resources section and into the authors section and changed the layout so you can see all the author vids on the same page now.  There are a bunch more vids in there now too so check it out.

Still more to come.  If you have any questions or comments, leave them in the forum.  We'd love to hear what you think.

]]> 6/17/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 7:02:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=42 42 <![CDATA[2009 John W. Campbell Award Finalists]]> City at the End of TimeThe Midnight ManLittle BrotherSong of TimeThe Philosopher\\\'s ApprenticeAnathem

The finalists for the 2009 John W. Campbell Memorial Award have been announced.  The nominees are:

City at the End of Time by Greg Bear (Del Rey)
Valley of Day-Glo by Nick Di Chario (Robert J. Sawyer Books)
Little Brother by Cory Doctorow (Tor)
Song of Time by  Ian MacLeod, (PS Publishing)
The Philosopher's Apprentice by James Morrow (William Morrow)
Anathem by Neal Stephenson (William Morrow)

]]> 6/10/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 6:32:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=40 40 <![CDATA[2009 British Fantasy Award Short List]]> Memoirs of a Master ForgerThe Midnight ManRain DogsThe Graveyard BookThe Victoria VanishesThieving Fear

The finalists for the 2009 British Fantasy Award have been announced.  The nominees for best novel are:

Memoirs of a Master Forger by William Heaney (Gollancz)
The Midnight Man  by Simon Clark (Severn House)
Rain Dogs  by Gary McMahon (Humdrumming)
The Graveyard Book  by Neil Gaiman (Bloomsbury)
The Victoria Vanishes by Christopher Fowler (Little Brown)
Thieving Fear by Ramsey Campbell (PS Publishing)

Get the complete list of nominees for all categories here.

]]> 6/8/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 8:47:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=36 36 <![CDATA[2009 Arthur C. Clarke Award Winner]]> Song of TimeThe winner of the 2009 Arthur C. Clarke Award has been announced.  The award and the £2009 cash prize goes to:

Song of Time by Ian R. MacLeod.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

]]> 4/29/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 4:51:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=34 34 <![CDATA[2009 Locus Science Fiction Award Finalists]]> MatterCity at the End of TimeMarsboundAnathemSaturn\\'s Children

The finalists for the 2009 Locus Science Fiction Award have been announced:

Matter by Iain M. Banks (Orbit)
City at the End of Time by Greg Bear (Gollancz, Del Rey)
Marsbound by Joe Haldeman (Ace)
Anathem by Neal Stephenson (Atlantic UK, Morrow)
Saturn's Children by Charles Stross (Orbit, Ace)

Check 'em out on the Locus page.

]]> 4/27/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:55:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=30 30 <![CDATA[2009 Locus Fantasy Award Finalists]]> The Shadow YearsmLaviniaThe Bell at Sealey HeadThe Dragons of BabelAn Evil Guest

The finalists for the 2009 Locus Fantasy Award have been announced:

The Shadow Years by Jeffrey Ford (Morrow)
Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin (Harcourt)
The Bell at Sealey Head by Patricia A. McKillip (Ace)
The Dragons of Babel by Michael Swanwick (Tor)
An Evil Guest by Gene Wolfe (Tor)

Check 'em out on the Locus page.

]]> 4/27/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:47:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=28 28 <![CDATA[2008 Nebula Award Winner]]> PowersThe winner of the 2008 Nebula Award has been announced.

Powers by Ursula K. Le Guin

Our sincere congratulations to Ursula K. Le Guin.







 

 

]]> 4/26/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 12:27:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=26 26 <![CDATA[2008 BSFA Award Winner]]> The Night SessionsThe winner of the 2008 British Science Fiction Association Award has been announced.

The Night Sessions by Ken MacLeod

Congrats to Ken MacLeod for the win.

 

 

 

 

 

 

]]> 4/11/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 1:49:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=24 24 <![CDATA[The 2008 Philip K. Dick Award Winners]]> Emissaries From the DeadTerminal MindThis 2008 Philip K. Dick Award winners have been announced.  It's a Tie.

Emissaries from the Dead, Adam-Troy Castro (Eos Books)
Terminal Mind, David Walton (Meadowhawk Press)

Congratulations to Adam-Troy Castro and David Walton.

 

 

 

 

]]> 4/11/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 1:33:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=21 21 <![CDATA[2009 Hugo Award Nominees]]> AnathemThe Graveyard BookLittle BrotherSaturn\\\'s ChildrenZoe\\\'s Tale

The nominees for the 2009 Hugo Award have been announced:

Anathem by Neal Stephenson (Morrow; Atlantic UK)
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins; Bloomsbury UK)
Little Brother by Cory Doctorow (Tor Teen; HarperVoyager UK)
Saturn's Children by Charles Stross (Ace; Orbit UK)
Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi (Tor)

Check 'em out on the Hugo page.

]]> 3/20/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:29:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=19 19 <![CDATA[2009 Arthur C. Clarke Award Shortlist]]> Song of TimeThe Quiet WarHouse fo SunsAnathemThe MargaretsMartin Martin\\\\'s on the Other Side

The shortlist for the 2009 Arthur C. Clarke Award has been announced:

Song of Time, Ian R. MacLeod (PS Publishing)
The Quiet War, Paul McAuley (Gollancz)
House of Suns, Alastair Reynolds (Gollancz)
Anathem, Neal Stephenson (Atlantic)
The Margarets Sheri S. Tepper (Gollancz)
Martin Martin's on the Other Side, Mark Wernham (Jonathan Cape)

Check 'em out on the Clarke page.

]]> 3/18/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 10:06:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=17 17 <![CDATA[2008 Nebula Award Nominees]]> Little BrotherPowersCauldronBrasylNaking MoneySuperpowers

The nominees for the 2008 Nebula Award have been announced:

Little Brother - Doctorow, Cory (Tor, Apr08)
Powers - Le Guin, Ursula K. (Harcourt, Sep07)
Cauldron - McDevitt, Jack (Ace, Nov07)
Brasyl - McDonald, Ian (Pyr, May07)
Making Money - Pratchett, Terry (Harper, Sep07)
Superpowers - Schwartz, David J. (Three Rivers Press, Jun08)

Check 'em out on the Nebula page.

]]> 2/27/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 4:05:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=15 15 <![CDATA[Nalo's triple threat ]]> Brown Girl in the RingNalo Hopkinson was interviewed by the folks at the Nebula Award site, yesterday. Nalo had lots to say about her writing process, and various other projects she has going on. The part that piqued our interest? She has not one, not two, but three new novels in the works:

"I'm working on finishing those three novels; two adult fantasies and one young adult one. First out of the pipe should be Blackheart Man, which is sort of an alternate history fantasy set in the 18th Century in a region something like the Caribbean."

Hopkinson already has four books in our database that have collectively nabbed seven nominations for awards as big as the Hugo and the Nebula, and as brainy as the Philip K. Dick and John W. Campbell awards. All of this puts her easily in the top quintile of Worlds Without End tracked authors. With three more books coming out, might she skyrocket into the top 10%?



]]> 2/2/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 12:39:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=113 113 <![CDATA[Science Fiction not Literature?]]> Return to publisher page.I was shocked - shocked! - this week to learn that Tor Books has a blog.  Well, not so much shocked that they have a blog as the fact that I didn\'t know about it.... especially since its URL is www.tor.com.  What really surprised me is that the blog isn't exclusively about books (the top post on Sunday was about Battlestar Galacica), and that it is not limited to science fiction.

In fact, the post that caught my eye announced the death of John Updike.  This, of course, is big news in the world of any fan of literature (speculative or not), but it was an anecdote at the end of the post that really got my blood boiling.  You see, one might get away with talking about John Updike on a site like tor.com, if you referenced some of his more surreal work, like The Centaur, which they did, of course.  That, however, buys you no credibility among some literati.  What do I mean?  Here's the money quote:

"A Harvard professor had said something dismissive about science fiction, and a colleague reminded her that she had taught The Left Hand of Darkness. 'That’s true,' she explained patiently, 'but that’s not science fiction. It’s literature.'”

Oooo...that makes me sooo aaangwy.

]]> 2/1/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 1:17:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=111 111 <![CDATA[Vinge talks sequels ]]>  Vernor VingeVernor Vinge was interviewed, last month, by Locus Magazine, where he laments the difficulty of near future fiction, and then gives up a few hints about a sequel to Fire Upon the Deep, which he says:

"...takes place on the Tines\' world about ten years after AFUD ends. There are many of the same characters, though some of the refugee children are now adults. The super hyper bad guys are still way out in space, rushing as fast as they can rush (in their sublight way) to reach the Tines' world. And then there are the Tines, which for me (and I think for most readers) were the most attractive part of AFUD. (Though I've run into some readers who preferred the Zones stuff, in terms of emotional attraction and novelty, the Tines are the winners.) The nature of Tinish collective intelligence interacts with practically every idiom and cliché. Things like 'I'm a little bit hungry' or 'Why don't you let your conscience go for a walk?' all take on new meaning. Of course, this can also be a problem. I think Samuel R. Delany has pointed out that literalized metaphors put a constraint on science fiction that is not so common in other forms. We science-fiction writers also want to use, and have to use, 'real' metaphors, so we have to write in such a way that the reader can distinguish whether we\'re using a phrase in the conventional way or if its literalization is what's intended.”

Oh, and about that near-future stuff? According to Vinge, Rainbows End, "cries out for a sequel", but may still be a decade away.

]]> 1/24/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 6:22:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=109 109 <![CDATA[Iain M. Banks for $1]]> Use of WeaponsSure, we want you to buy this book from our Amazon store, but sometimes the competition is so good, that we have to give props.  Orbit is offering a different e-book every month for one dollar, each.  In February, it will be Use of Weapons, the 1991 Clarke and BSFA nominee by Iain M. Banks.  There's your chance to snag two more squares in your award book collection.

Of course, if you like ebooks and want to save some cash, WWEnd has a few for $0, in our Project Gutenburg ebook page.  The 24 authors represented include 14 award winners from our database, including such luminaries as Poul Anderson, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Cory Doctorow, and Kurt Vonnegut.

Since I travel so much, and rarely stay in the same city more than a year or two, I've been investing in e-books for a while, now.  Hey, I don't have to pack as many books when I move, and now I can carry large portions of my library in my pocket, when I fly.  These ebooks are readable by any reader (I have two Sony Readers, but I currently use the Amazon Kindle for its built in browser and e-store), and can even be imported in to many smartphones.

 

]]> 1/22/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 8:02:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=107 107 <![CDATA[2009 BSFA Award Nominees]]> FloodThe Gone-Away WorldThe Night SessionsAnathem

The nominees for the 2009 British Science Fiction Association Award have been announced:

Flood by Stephen Baxter
The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway
The Night Sessions by Ken MacLeod
Anathem by Neal Stephenson

Check 'em out on the BSFA page.

]]> 1/22/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:27:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=13 13 <![CDATA[Cyteen Sequel, Finally ]]> RegensisIt seems everyone's dream is coming true. First, we find out that Ender's Game, after a 24 year wait, is getting a true sequel. Now, another 1980's classic, Nebula and Locus winner, Cyteen, is getting a long awaited follow up. CJ Cherryh is a superstar on the WWEnd database, ranking #6 on our all-time winningest authors list, racking up a whopping 24 award nominations with 18 different books. She kept busy with all those books, but a sequel to Cyteen was what we kept eagerly waiting to read.

The new book, called Regenesis, can be found in our Amazon store. If you read it, please email us your opinion. We expect to see it in our database when it gets nominated for something (as will surely be the case) next year, and we'd love to have your reviews to publish when it happens.

I haven't been this excited since Stephen R Donaldson finally ended his decades long Thomas Covenant hiatus with Runes of the Earth.

]]> 1/22/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 6:16:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=105 105 <![CDATA[Preliminary Nebula noms in]]> Nebula Awards LogoThe SFWA announced the candidates for the Nebula Awards, ceremony to be held April 24-26 at UCLA (alongside the Festival of Books). This first round of nominees will be shortened before the actual ceremony, and when it is whittled down further, we'll add the books to the list.  For now, the candidates for nomination are:


Abraham, Daniel: A Betrayal in Winter (Tor, July 2007)
Barzak, Chris: One for Sorrow (Bantam, September 2007)
Bull, Emma: Territory (Tor, July 2007)
Doctorow, Cory: Little Brother (Tor, April 08)
Goonan, Kathleen Ann: In War Times (Tor, May 07)
Le Guin, Ursula K.: Powers (Harcourt Children\'s Books, September 2007)
McDevitt, Jack: Cauldron (Ace, November 2007)
McDonald, Ian: Brasyl (Pyr, May 2007)
Pratchett, Terry: Making Money (Harper/Collins, Septempber 2007)
Rothfuss, Patrick: The Name of the Wind (DAW, April 2007)

 

]]> 1/21/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 8:48:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=103 103 <![CDATA[Hugo noms are coming, with new category ]]> File:300 comic.jpgIt is Hugo nominating time again. If you would like to participate in this year's nomination process, you'll need to become a suporting or attending member of Anticipation, which will host the 2009 Worldcon in Canada. You'll also be able to vote on the 2011 Worldcon location (personally, I hope you vote for Seattle). Once a member, you can nominate up to five works in each category, so get to work!

The big news, however, is the new Best Graphic Story category. Geezers like me might call it the "comic book" category, but I know you afficianados would correct me. Since the Hugo is not technically a science fiction award (fantasy novels also qualify), I wonder how loose the eligibility requirements would be for this one. Is it enough that a work is drawn, or must it be otherworldly? Could Batman receive an award? What about a classy title that isn't techy or fantastic at all, like Ghost World? Me, I'm rooting for the great one: Asterix!

]]> 1/21/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 7:10:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=100 100 <![CDATA[COSine 6]]> George R. R. MartinIf you can get to Colrado Springs this weekend, you have a chance to meet several sci-fi legends at the 6th annual COSine science fiction festival, January 23-25. Several award winning authors from the WWEnd database will be present, including:

George RR Martin, a three-time Locus Fantasy Award winner, and an 18 time nominee for virtually every award in our database, will be the guest of honor. You can catch him on Friday at 3:00 when he'll be part of a panel on science fiction literature with Connie Willis and Mem Morman, and then at the opening ceremonies at 7PM with Ted Monogue. Both Mr. Martin and Ms. Willis will be around pretty much all day on Saturday and Sunday.

Wil McCarthy, a Phillip K Dick and double Nebula nominee, will also be present on Sunday, with appearances at 10 and 2.

Check out the full schedule for these authors and many other guests. We'd suggest a Sunday ticket, if you want to meet all three award winners/nominees (it's only $10 on that day), but you can hang out all weekend for $45. By the way, if you snag a pic of Wil McCarhy, we'd like a copy.

]]> 1/21/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 5:54:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=98 98 <![CDATA[This is Not a Game ]]> If you like near future books, like I do, you\'ll be interested in Walter Jon Williams' upcoming book, This is Not a Game.   We have high expectations for this book, not only because Mr. Williams has been nominated for so many awards (including the Hugo, Phillip K. Dick, Locus Fantasy, and two Nebulas), but also because he is apparently a hard core gamer with some impressive street cred.  The same can be said of the main characters of this thriller, that takes the reader into what he sees as the not-so-distant future of gaming.

You'll have to preorder this one, as it doesn't come out until March 24.  You may as well read it on the 25th, though, because we\'re guessing it'll get a nom from somebody, and he might finally win one this time.  Think about how cool it would that you already read it before it was a winner.   You can check out the latest review (such as it is) at Publisher's Weekly.

 

]]> 1/19/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 5:22:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=96 96 <![CDATA[Nerds Make Better Lovers]]> TeaserIn case you weren't convinced by the sexual conquests of the Tri-Lams in Revenge of the Nerds,  io9 has uncovered more proof that it's hip to be square.  In an article mostly about careers that sci-fi authors used to hold, out comes some 1960s porn by Robert Silverberg.  That was, of course, before he snagged his first noms for both the Hugo and Nebula awards for Thorns, in 1968.

Campbell winner, PKD and double-Nebula nominee, Barry N. Maltzberg was apparently dipping his pen in the illicit well, according to the article.  

That got us to wondering, how many more pornographic authors might be in the WWEnd database?  I suppose that depends on whether you count Stranger in a Strange Land as porn.
 

 

]]> 1/16/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 11:47:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=94 94 <![CDATA[2009 Philip K. Dick Award Nominees]]> Fast Forward 2UPDATED: Turns out Endgame was published in 2007, not 2008, and has consequently been replaced with Plague War by Jeff Carlson. 

The nominees for the 2009 Philip K. Dick Award have been announced:

Emissaries from the Dead, Adam-Troy Castro (Eos Books)
Fast Forward 2, Lou Anders (ed.) (Pyr)
Judge, Karen Traviss (Eos Books)
Plague War, Jeff Carlson (Ace Books)
Terminal Mind, David Walton (Meadowhawk Press)
Time Machines Repaired While-U-Wait, K. A. Bedford (EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing)

Check 'em out on the PKD Page.

 

]]> 1/12/2009 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 10:37:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=11 11 <![CDATA[Asimov Hits the Big Screen?]]> In the early days of the Hugo Awards, there must have been nominees... but nobody seems to know what they were.  So, for all we know, The End of Eternity might be a 1955 Hugo nominee.  After all, the author was the great Isaac Asimov who got the nom on half a dozen other occasions, and usually won.

At least we hope The End of Eternity is a Hugo nominated book, because that would give us an excuse to talk about this:  Empire Online is reporting that the Asimov classic was just greenlighted to become a feature film.  Read all about it.

]]> 12/3/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 8:48:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=92 92 <![CDATA[WWEnd Update: Novel Ratings Avatars]]>












We've just updated the novel page to display member avatars in the novel rating. Click "+ Member Rating" to see all the members who read and/or rated the novel. You can click on the avatars to go to that member's profile to see what other books they liked etc.

Ender's Game has gotten a lot of reads as you might expect. Check it out.

]]> 11/19/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:59:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=9 9 <![CDATA[Ender's Sequel (for real, this time)]]> Ender in ExileYeah, Orson Scott Card has written plenty of follow-up books to his 1985 classic, Ender's Game.  None of them, however, satisfied the reader's question about what happened next.  The events of Speaker for the Dead and Xenocide happen thousands of years later, Ender's Shadow was a retelling of the original novel, and Shadow of the Hegemon jumps back to the 22nd, century, but nowhere near the events of the Formics war.  Then there were all those prequel short stories, and then....well, you get the point.

Orson is a tease.

Well, it seems he has finally taken pity on us.  Finally, Mr. Card aims to satisfy with a direct sequel to Ender's Game, depicting Ender as a teenager, unable to return to Earth.  This novel promises to fill in the gaps between Enders Game and Speaker for the Dead, and presumably results in Ender deciding to board the interstellar ship that push him forward in time.  Look for this book to get a nomination or two.  You can find a press release here.

 

]]> 11/12/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:28:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=90 90 <![CDATA[The Anne Rice book you won't want to read?]]> Anne RiceBritish Fantasy, Locus, and World Fantasy Award nominee, Anne Rice, is one of the most commercially successful authors in the WWEnd database.  Why, then, would her next book not qualify to win any SF awards?  Well, for starters, it isn't a novel, and it isn't SF (speculative fiction, for those not geeky enough to already know).

That isn't why her fans are up in arms, however.  This is:  The book pretty much explains why she will never write another Anne Rice vampire thriller again.

Yes, that's right, Anne is out  of the Goth business (has been for a while, too).  The Detroit Metro Times reviews her latest, entitled Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession.  The autobiographical treatise details her (re)conversion to Catholicism and her abandonment of all things goth.

Personally, I think Catholicism is plenty goth, and vampyric tales are usually best told with heavy doses of the highly ritualized religion, which happens to be my own.  Nevertheless, I'm sure plenty of WWEnd readers have opinions on this.  Religion and goth horror... do they mix?

]]> 11/12/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 7:43:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=88 88 <![CDATA[A Game of Thrones on HBO]]> This looks promising!  According to /film, HBO has given the go ahead to produce a pilot for George R.R. Martin's A Game of Thrones series.  There are a several things that excite me about this:

- I read the first 3 books of this series and found them to be quite good.  I got distracted with other stuff and never got back to finish out the series so if they do make it I can finally see how it all turns out.

- The plan is to make each book in the series into an entire season!  That is brilliant!  I hate when a book, or indeed a series of books, gets condensed into a movie or miniseries.  You lose so much detail!  The council of Rivendell scene in The Lord of the Rings movies is a prime example.  They can tell the whole story and they won't have to make the kind of cuts that inevitably kill character development and back story.

- After watching half an episode of Legend of the Seeker I'm primed for somebody to make a good fantasy series and HBO has made some excellent shows.  Rome anyone?

- Since it is HBO you can bet they will pull no punches.  There is some serious violence and gratuitous sex in Martin's world and we'll get to see it all as only HBO can deliver.  Uh.... Rome anyone?

What do you guys think?  Can HBO pull this off?

]]> 11/12/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 5:49:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=7 7 <![CDATA[Happy Birthday, Mr. Gaiman]]> Neil GaimanThe man who gave us American Gods, Stardust, and Anansi Boys has, in return, been given another year of life. There's a nice new birthday tribute to the man on FindingDulcinea. One of his books nabbed two wins and six nominationaccording toour Book Trakr, leaving us to wonder which he has more... nominations or birthdays?

Reply to this post in the forum.

 

 

 

 

 

]]> 11/10/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:14:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=86 86 <![CDATA[Alex Benedict fans rejoice!]]> The second Alex Benedict novel was nominated for Nebula Award, and the third one won the damn thing (it also picked a Campbell nom, to boot). 

Now, author Jack McDevitt has penned a fourth novel highlighting the unusually talented space-travelling antiquities dealer:  The Devil's Eye, published by Ace and on the shelves as of last Tuesday.  I wonder how many nominations this book will receive.

 

 

 

 

 

]]> 11/9/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 9:46:00 AM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=82 82 <![CDATA[Reducing the Miraculous to the Mundane (with apologies to Joan Didion)]]> Whether or not our SF authors intend to be futurists, we often look to them to answer the perennial question: what's next?  It may be true, as Arthur C Clarke maintained, that a "suffiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic".  That is precisely why some, like Geoff Ryman, want no part of the stuff.  After all, if science can do anything, where's the challenge in prediction?

To this end, Ryman (as he elaborates in last week's interview with NebulaAwards.com) wants to ban the following tropes from modern science fiction:

• No FTL, no wormholes, warps etc as magic wands around that
• No Very Fast travel without time dilation
• No time travel
• No parallel universes based on quantum uncertainty
• No telepathy
• No aliens

We at Worlds Without End [okay, some of us...okay, maybe it's just me] couldn't agree more.  That is why we will be adding Mundane SF to our list of sub-genre tags.  Please look up any award winning book that you think qualifies as Mundane and tag it (I just added Rainbows End by Vernor Vinge).  


]]> 11/8/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 6:50:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=80 80 <![CDATA[Liz Williams on your iPhone? ]]> Liz Williams , has been making her mark on the WWEnd awards list, with nominations for the British Science Fiction, British Fantasy, and Arthur C Clarke awards, plus three noms for the Phillip K Dick award. It's only a matter of time before she starts winning them. We're pulling for you, Liz.

How does a gothic novelist pull down nominations for science fiction awards? Ms. Williams combines goth and science in unusual ways, setting her characters on the surface of Mars in Banner of Souls, the fictional worlds with names like Nehm in Darkland or "the planet of Latent Emanation (where does she pick these names?) in The Poison Master.

Now, Liz is mixing the old with the new again by making digital books available online. Her publisher, Baen Books has just launched webscription.net, a new ebook commerce site that is compatible with the Kindle and iPhone platforms, where they are highlighting three Liz Williams books, Snake Agent, The Demon and the City, and Precious Dragon.


]]> 11/8/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 4:59:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=78 78 <![CDATA[Science Fiction is Now]]> In so many ways, classic science fiction authors predicted technologies that are in everyday use now. Think Star Trek communicators and everyday cellular flip phones.

The most recent example of sci-fi becoming sci-fa(ct) is already out. In Vernor Vinge's latest, Rainbows End, children are depicted playing their videogames not in their living rooms in front of the television, but outside.  I work for a co-op dedicated to getting people (especially children) outside, so you can imagine how delighted I was at the prospect of technology that actually takes you outdoors.  The technology in this book, however, might leave a parent wistful for the antiquated yet charming x-box days. 

The tech works like this: Everyone (well, not everyone, but everyone who is anyone) in Vinge's world views their surroundings with enhanced vision.  A virtual layer is superimposed on the world with a contact lens display screen.  Forget CRTs being replaced by LCD.  There is no need for a computer screen because displays now live under your eyelid.  Sound far fetched?  It's being done.

The contact lens, however, is just another interface.  As amazing as this technology seems to us, it will be taken for granted in short order.  The real technology power will be in the hands of programmers.  Vinge predicts whole virtual worlds that will be experienced not in dimly lit apartments (a la Nueromancer), but in the light of day.  The students of fictional Fairmont High (at least the ones who actually show up to class rather than attend virtually, which they can do) run outside to recess and play games outside and layer virtual worlds over real objects to create adventure.  Would you like to do that now?

You can.  The guys at Groundspeak have been developing an interactive gaming system called WhereIGo with a functionality that harkens back to Zork.  Garmin's latest handheld GPS, the Colorado, is the first GPS device capable of running this program, although can also use a GPS enabled palm unit.  So, think back to when you played Zork in 1980.  For those of you who weren't around (or perhaps were around but weren't quite the geek I was) in 1980, Zork was text based game.  You start out in a room with several doors.  You navigate the game by inputting simple commands like "exit left doorway" or "open treasure chest".  Even later games like Doom or Quake were merely graphically enhanced versions of Zork.  WhereIGo makes the great outdoors your virtual world by using a GPS interface like the Colorado.  Instead of inputting those kludgy sentences (like Zork) or using a joystick (like today's games), you input your virtual actions by actually moving around in the world.  I am currently working on adapting these games for REI.  Soon, you will be able to play these games at local stores (you already can at the Seattle and Portland locations).  Here's what a WhereIGo enable Colorado looks like: 

So, here's an example.  A programmer goes to a local park and starts to input data.  The big oak tree in the middle of the park can be anything in the game.  When you go to that tree, something will happen in the game.  Perhaps there is a street sign that can provide a clue that you might need in the game.  The only way to continue playing would be to go get that clue.  Since the Colorado is a GPS, the game knows where in the game you are.  

Games like WhereIGo are in their primitive stage, at the moment, but give the programmers some time, and they will create a rich world that can easily be ported through something like those contact lens displays.  

That virtual world is coming fast.

 

 

]]> 11/7/2008 12:00:00 PM 1/1/1900 7:00:00 PM http://www.worldswithoutend.com/?view=plink&id=76 76